We’ve all played the game where you demonstrate your trust in someone by folding your arms and falling backwards expecting to be caught before you hit the ground. Yeah, I didn’t like that as a kid either and I dislike it even more as an adult. It’s scary to place your trust in a relatives hands, let alone a strangers. If we are not careful, the first step through our doors for a business transaction can feel just like that – falling backwards into a strangers hands hoping he doesn’t abuse that trust by allowing you to fall.
The memorial industry is a recondite one and isn’t high on the list of places to visit. The least we as memorialists can do is help them feel at ease. Here are a few ways to put your customers at ease.
- Quiet, clean, dignified office. Everything is better when it’s clean and organized, including a memorial. Wouldn’t you find it disturbing if Foot Locker had all the shoes disorganized and all the displays had 3 months of dust on them? Would you buy from them? Me neither.
- Play some music. And not a funeral dirge! Give them something to lift the spirits.
- Educate them. There are a lot of questions that need answers and most of them go unasked because your customer has no idea where to start. Tell them where the granite comes from; explain the reasons behind the price differences; tell them something about the engraving process. You may find it boring but they’ll find it comforting. Knowledge is a key to eliminating uncertainty and fear.
- Occasionally leave them alone. A memorial is not a product but an investment and, consequently, can cost several thousand dollars. Discussing dollars and cents in the presence of a salesperson can be intimidating and uncomfortable. Let them know you’re available but give them some privacy.